Woah.. Miller Brewing sold to South African Brewing (1 Viewer)

[Dave Poehlman]

You fellow beer fans might be interested in this one... especially you Milwaukeeans.
It sounds exciting.. I just hope business is really kept here in Milw. as they say... the last thing we need is another major brewery moving out of town (ie: Pabst)
This part excites me most:

On a short-term basis, Miller expects to see an immediate benefit by bringing Pilsner Urquell, one of South African Breweries' better-known brands, into its U.S. distribution system.

I love PU. Hopefully it'll be made more available.

 

[ChrisMatson]

About a year ago, I was paid to taste Castle Lager for a marketing company. It was pretty good too. Philip Morris is smart to have spun off Kraft Foods and now to sell Miller. They will probably need money to pay off settlements into the future.

 

[Brian Kleinke]

Aye, tis interesting what Philip Morris has been doing... I read an article on this sale when I saw it over on MSNBC.com since I was born and have lived in and around good old Milwaukee.

I can't stand Beer, but I'll be interested in the development of this sale.

Brian

 

[Bhagi Katbamna]

Philip Morris is doing just fine. Its stock price has more than doubled(almost tripled) in the last 1-2 years. Interestingly, today I heard on NPR that the anti-smoking ads are having the opposite effect on teens. Should they have ads that tell kids to smoke now?

 

[Scott Van Dyke]

the last thing we need is another major brewery moving out of town (ie: Pabst)

AMEN to that Brother!

Dave, you ever take the Lakefront Brewery tour?
Man, puts Miller's free two beers to shame. All you can drink!

 

[Mark Zimmer]

Alas, I've been spoiled by smaller breweries like Garten Brau here in Madison or the New Glarus brewery which turns out some marvelous brew indeed---try their Uff Da bock sometime if you can get it.....I tried drinking Miller last week and couldn't do it. When Joe Jackson was here ten years or so ago, someone gave him a Miller on stage, he drank some, made a face, looked at the bottle and said "Champagne of bottled piss."

 

[Justin Doring]

As a Philip Morris stockholder, I wasn't happy hearing this when it was proposed, and I'm sorry to see it actually happen. Morris' reasoning is that Miller isn't making big money, but my reasoning is it isn't losing money either. This and their ridiculous proposed name change is a mistake.

"Interestingly, today I heard on NPR that the anti-smoking ads are having the opposite effect on teens."

Well that's what the government asked for. You mean the government was wrong? No. That never happens. After all, the government should be involved in every aspect of every life and every business. Their expertise in all areas is essential to the survival and prosperity of our youth and our nation.

 

[ChrisMatson]

It has been widely publicized for the last few days that the ads made by Philip Morris are not as effective as ads made by other companies. It has been stated that the PM ads, with clean-cut kids may actually make non-smokers feel left out and encourage them to smoke. Now why would PM want to do that? Check out this article.

 

[MickeS]

The PM "anti-smoking" ads are rather ridiculous compared to the other ones out there. They are designed to keep the government at bay, and also NOT to keep kids from smoking. They present smoking as something that's cool, but stupid. Well gee, I wonder why kids are more likely to smoke after seeing them.

/Mike

 

[Justin Doring]

Philip Morris is, obviously, in the business to sell cigarettes. They make a product just like other companies, and people choose to buy their product. Cigarettes are not "good" for you, but then again few products are.

Instead of putting the blame on tobacco companies for "influencing kids to smoke," people should start assigning blame to where it belongs. Parents are to blame, because they do not talk to their kids about the dangers of smoking. If they do bother to do this and their children still choose to smoke, they are still are to blame for their lack of influence on their children’s lives. Something went wrong in the rearing stage, but in today’s society people aren’t responsible, only companies. Children themselves and their peers are also to blame, because they make poor decisions that affect their lives, despite having been made aware of all the information. Are these poor decisions the tobacco companies’ fault?

The problem with America today is that there is no accountability. If a person goes and kills ten people with a pistol, it is not the person’s fault, but rather the gunmaker’s fault for designing and producing the gun and the movie industry’s fault for portraying violence in film.

An advertisement, like any anything, whether it be a car, a gun, a tree, a hamburger, a book, a painting, etc., is a neutral thing. It is not good or bad, and it doesn't do anything. I don't know about you, but a cigarette advertisement has never jumped off the back of a magazine or a billboard and shoved a lit cigarette in my mouth and forced me to smoke. Has this happened to anyone? A person makes the decision, not the advertisement.

 

[D. Scott MacDonald]

Justin, my parents taught me not to smoke and brought it up continuously. I knew that I shouldn't smoke. I knew that I'd get my ass kicked if I was ever caught smoking. But I did it anyway (if only for a year or so). There was just too much peer pressure, and I found that most kids that I knew would do just about anything to fit in and keep from getting picked on. This was in the late 70s, so I don't know if things are better or worse today. I think that in this case, parents are fighting a really tough battle.

 

[Justin Doring]

Scott, I agree that parents are facing a tough battle, especially when single parent families are commonplace, but one value parents should instill in their children is that it's okay to "go against the flow." Naturally, this is easier said than done, but it's far from impossible. The problem is that many of the people having children simply shouldn't be having them. Too many parents simply dump their children in school during the day and in front of the television in the afternoon and evening and expect their job to be done for them. These parents made the choice to have children, and so they must make the sacrifices, but once again we see a lack of accountability here, and we're told that it's not the parents' fault, but rather the communities', schools' or the governments'.

Peer pressure is only a powerful force because people allow it to be. Freedom of thought is a wonderful thing, but we're experiencing a severe drought in America at this time. There are too many sheep, and the problem is being perpetuated by most.

 

[D. Scott MacDonald]

There are too many sheep, and the problem is being perpetuated by most.

Agreed, but who is to blame for this phenomenon? Children/teens are very immature and susceptible (by definition). The tobacco companies spending billions in advertisement only adds to the problem. A parent's influence can only go so far, and hopefully these advertisements may help kill the myth that "it's cool to smoke". (It may be much better than when I was young - I don't really know.)

 

[Dan B]

Miller Brewing sold!? Damn, what is the world coming to? Pretty soon, all we'll have here in Wisconsin is the cheese. Please don't take our cheese!
Regarding the anti-smoking campaign, don't overlook the fact that "people like drugs"! This includes beer. The government is fighting a losing battle there. I haven't seen the ads you're referring to, but I really feel that the more the government tries to intervene, the more resistance it will face.
Hell, if the government ever makes cheese illegal, then...look out.

 

[Paul O]

reminds me of Ewan Macgregor's line from Trainspotting - If Orange Juice was illegal we would probably try to inject it.

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Interestingly, today I heard on NPR that the anti-smoking ads are having the opposite effect on teens.

Those truth ads make me want to light up just to spite the people that make them

 

[Dave Poehlman]

Dave, you ever take the Lakefront Brewery tour?

Not Lakefront, I've been on Sprecher a few times.. They give you 5 tickets.. but generally, people leave and give you their spare tickets and we've sat there all afternoon.

 

[Bhagi Katbamna]

The anti-drug ads have been a disasterous failure as well(causing kids to use drugs more). They are going back to the "this is your brain..." type ads which were more effective. The ads that I was talking about before were not made by Philip Morris(or any other cigarette company).

 

[Justin_M]

So, will Miller Park be changed to SABMillerPAC Park? Or Phillip Morris could try to revisit Candlestick Park and call it Cancerstick Park. That would really draw the fans.

"Saturday is Fan Appreciation Day!!! All fans 18 and older get a free carton of ciggs!!!" -This weeks sign of the Apocalypse

OXonce

 

[Bhagi Katbamna]

So, will Miller Park be changed to SABMillerPAC Park? Or Phillip Morris could try to revisit Candlestick Park and call it Cancerstick Park. That would really draw the fans.

Does the People's Republic of California still allow smoking outdoors at public places? I know one county in Maryland that tried to prohibit smoking in one's own home if it was deemed to be too offensive to the neighbors.